What are the allegations against P Diddy?

Sean “Diddy” Combs, rapper and music mogul credited with helping launch the careers of some of the biggest stars in recent years, now faces multiple civil lawsuits accusing him of sex trafficking, sexual abuse and rape.

Combs, formerly known as Puff Daddy, P. Diddy and many other names, has undergone myriad reinventions since the start of his career – but has since entered an unwelcome new “era.”

Federal agents from the United States Homeland Security raided two of the rapper’s homes in Los Angeles and Miami on March 25, as he faces a series of various charges.

Combs, 54, has strongly denied all allegations against him. His lawyers have called the lawsuits and their accusations of money grabs “baseless” or “sickening.”

The artist has not been formally charged or accused by federal prosecutors of any crime.

The new lawsuits come months after Combs’ former partner, Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, filed a lawsuit against him in November. She accused him of raping her in 2018, beating her, asking her to carry a gun to “make her feel uncomfortable and to show her how dangerous he was” and of forcing her into “unwanted sexual relations with male sex workers”.

Ms. Ventura’s lawsuit against Combs was settled a day after she filed it for an undisclosed amount of money.

The many allegations in Combs’ lawsuits date back to the 1990s, when he founded his own label, Bad Boy Records.

All allegations against Sean “Diddy” Combs:

The case against the rapper began on November 16, 2023 when he was sued by singer and dancer Cassie, his former partner, who alleged years of abuse.

It was filed under the New York Adult Survivors Act, just before it expired. This law provided adult victims of sexual assault with one year to file a civil action, regardless of the statute of limitations.

Casandra ‘Cassie’ Ventura

R&B singer Cassie, whose full name is Casandra Ventura, filed a lawsuit in 2023 alleging she was trafficked, raped and beaten by Combs repeatedly over 10 years.

Her lawsuit claimed that Combs lured the singer into her “ostentatious, fast-paced, drug-fueled lifestyle” shortly after she met him, and signed him to her label in 2005, when she was only 19 and he was 37.

Ms Ventura said the abuse began early in their relationship and that when she tried to end it in 2018, he forced his way into her Los Angeles home and raped her.

The lawsuit against Combs was settled a day after she filed it for an undisclosed amount of money.

Ms. Ventura told CNN she chose to “resolve this matter amicably,” while Combs’ attorney said the settlement was “in no way an admission of wrongdoing” and changed nothing in his denial of the allegations.

His charges against Combs were brought through the New York Adult Survivors Act (ASA), which expired at midnight on November 23, 2023.

The law gave survivors a one-year window to file a civil suit, regardless of when the abuse took place, meaning incidents that took place over decades were finally brought to light.

More than 2,500 cases were filed under the ASA before it expired at midnight on November 23, 2023, according to court data sent to The independent watch.

Survivors have filed lawsuits against some of the most powerful men in the state, including major entertainment players such as Bill Cosby, Harvey Weinstein, Axl Rose and Combs.

Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones

In the most recent lawsuit against Combs, filed on February 26, 2024 in New York, producer Rodney “Lil Rod” Jones, alleged that he was “subjected to unwanted advances from associates of Diddy under his orders” and that he had been forced to maintain relations with Combs. with the sex workers Combs had hired.

The producer, who worked for Combs between September 2022 and November 2023, claimed that Combs sexually harassed, drugged and threatened him for more than a year.

He said he had video and audio evidence of Combs, his team and others “engaging in serious illegal activity.” The lawsuit identified rapper 50 Cent’s former girlfriend and the mother of one of his children, Daphne Joy, as one of the alleged sex workers.

The lawsuit also alleges that Combs regularly hosted “sex trafficking parties” with underage women and illegal drugs, and implies that record company executives who looked the other way benefited financially from access to celebrities and dignitaries. , including British Royal Prince Harry.

Prince Harry is not accused of any wrongdoing or of attending any parties himself.

Combs’ lawyer said The Los Angeles Times that the lawsuit contains “careless naming of events that are pure fiction and simply did not happen.”

Ryan Mendelsohn, 20, who lived in the area where Combs’ Los Angeles property was searched, told reporters he would see house parties and women outside until 6 a.m. , which was not usual.

“I drive by a lot, and I see this — a lot of girls, maybe five or six girls outside, some leave, some don’t, some come in,” he said, according to NBC News.

“I never thought about it,” said Mr. Mendelsohn, who added that he did not know Combs lived there until the news broke on Monday. “But now it’s crazy.”

Joy Dickerson-Neal

In November 2023, Joie Dickerson-Neal filed a lawsuit alleging that Combs drugged her, sexually assaulted her and secretly recorded the assault while she was a student in 1991, NBC News reported, citing the filing.

She claimed that Combs pressured her to go to dinner with him and she “reluctantly” agreed on January 3, 1991, the date she alleges she was drugged, “which put her in a physical state where she could not could not stand or walk independently. ”, reported the BBC.

The lawsuit also claims he recorded the assault and showed it to other people.

She then filed police reports in New York and New Jersey, spoke to prosecutors, but her colleagues told her they were “terrified that Combs might retaliate against them and that they would lose future business and musical opportunities if they made a statement in favor of her, NBC News reported, citing the lawsuit.

More women are coming forward

Since November, three other women have filed lawsuits in the Southern District of New York alleging they were sexually assaulted by Combs, according to NBC News.

Two of the women said they were teenagers at the time of the alleged assaults.

Anonymous requester

In November, an anonymous plaintiff accused Combs and singer-songwriter Aaron Hall of raping her and a friend in 1990 or 1991 after meeting at an MCA Records event in New York , where the singers “were very flirtatious and practical” and offered them drinks. reported Rolling Stone.

The suit alleges that Combs and Hall invited the women to Hall’s apartment for an afterparty during which the plaintiff “was offered more drinks and was forced to have sex with Combs,” and was then “shocked and traumatized”, before “Hall burst into the room. , cornered her and forced Jane Doe to have sex with him,” according to Rolling Stone.

After speaking to her friend, the plaintiff allegedly discovered that she had also “been forced to have sex with Combs and Hall in another room,” according to the suit.

A few days later, Combs allegedly visited the plaintiff and her friend at a home where they were staying, where he became “angry and began assaulting and choking Jane Doe to the point that she passed out.” , according to the lawsuit.

Anonymous accuser “Jane Doe”

In December, Combs was the subject of another lawsuit that claimed he drugged and gang raped a 17-year-old girl in 2003.

The plaintiff, identified as Jane Doe, accused Combs of abusing her with drugs and alcohol at his New York studio, then raping her and two associates.

The suit accused Combs of a “sex trafficking scheme,” in which Jane Doe was flown by private jet from her home in Michigan to New York.

Combs’ response to the allegations

Sean Combs has strongly denied all accusations against him and vowed to “fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”

In a December statement following Jane Doe’s lawsuit, he called the claims “sickening” and said her accusers were “looking for a quick payday.”

“Let me be absolutely clear: I did not do any of the horrible things alleged,” he said in a statement. “I will fight for my name, my family and for the truth.”

Combs’ attorney, Shawn Holley, called the events described in the lawsuit “pure fiction.”

“We have overwhelming and indisputable evidence that his claims are complete lies,” he said. “We will examine these wild allegations in court and take all appropriate action against those who make them. »

Following the settlement with Ventura, Ben Brafman, another attorney for Combs, said The independent: “To be clear, a decision to settle a lawsuit, especially in 2023, is in no way an admission of wrongdoing.

“Mr. Combs’ decision to settle the lawsuit in no way calls into question his categorical denial of the allegations.

“He is pleased that they have reached a mutual settlement and wishes Ms. Ventura the best.”